One room down....

I finished painting the dining room last week. And in my humble opinion, I think it looks GREAT! A lovely warm rich color red, which was all Brian's idea. I was leaning towards a toffee color, but he suggested red.

I have to say, this just makes me anxious to paint other rooms in the house. Tone down all of this builder beige.

Birdie Boo is growing

Laurie had her 15 month well check today. Of course, she was the life of the waiting room - laughing, playing, running around.

She weighed in at 24 lbs 8 oz, 30 3/4 inches long.

Lovely Color

Leah and I got busy today painting my dining room. Do you like it?

A lovely Pepto Bismol color. Ashley loves it!

No, that's not the final color. That's only the primer.

Did I scare you?

Fall School Pictures

Here are the kids School Pictures for Fall 2007.

Ashley - Kindergarten, Age 5 1/2

Daniel - Pre-K, Age 3 1/2

I have Daniel's to give out, but we returned Ashley's to have them retaken. That brown background just looked horrible with her skin color. Is it just me, or does she look a little sickly? They had retakes last week, and we had the background changed to blue. Hopefully it will be a better picture, but probably not. That's what we would get for trying to have a "good" school picture. It just isn't meant to be.

Dum Dums

Look What Birdie Found! She got into the pantry tonight and come out with a Dum Dum lollipop in her mouth. Evidently, she dumped a bucket of Halloween candy off the shelf and chose what she wanted. Wow, was she happy. Grinning from ear to ear with it in her mouth. I just didn't have the heart to take it away immediately. After sucking on it (well, really she was just drooling blue liquid) for a few minutes, she didn't even fight me when I took it away.

Update on Ashley Ears

We had a follow-up ENT visit for Ashley a couple weeks ago. GOOD NEWS! Both ears tested within normal limits. Even her problematic left ear. Her left eardrum was still a little contracted, but looked ok and tested well. We are very happy that there isn't another surgery in her near future. The funniest thing about the appointment was the Doctor trying to teach Ashley how to "pop" her ears. He kept trying to show her how, but it wasn't working. So he "popped" her ears with a small tool that blew air - kinda freaked her out. But then she was able to figure it out herself. He told her to "pop" her ears everyday.

Trick Or Treat!

We had a great Halloween night! The kids were in a good mood, even posing for pictures!

Ashley's costume came in the mail Monday afternoon. Talk about cutting it close.

David & Leah brought Alexander over to take some pictures with his cousins. We didn't even realize at first that both babies were wearing white with Black Polka Dots. No, we didn't plan it.

Brian and I took all three kids to a few houses as it was getting dark, then dropped Birdie off at home with Brian's parents. We had so much fun trick or treating with Ashley & Daniel that we were gone almost 2 hours!

Joining us in our Trick or Treating adventure was Ashley's friend (& neighbor) Delaney & her family. The girls were so cute, just running from house to house giggling. Daniel tried as much as he could to keep up, but got a piggy back ride the last 30 minutes or so. Surprising, Delaney's little brother, Ryan, is only two, but walked the whole way.

We stopped at the Batson house for drinks & to have them join us on our quest for candy.

It was really a great night. We did pay for it the next morning, as the kids went to bed 1 1/2 hours late and were kinda cranky getting ready for school on Thurs.

Where's my candy?

Happy Halloween

Happy Halloween from the Jones Pumpkins!

Would you believe that I got a picture of my three smiling in their pumpkin shirts? I printed off a bunch of copies, so just remind me to give one to you. I'm a little forgetful these days.

Here are the last few years' pictures to see how they've grown.

2006

2005

2004

2003

2002

Halloween Party

Here are the kids before the party, getting their costumes on for the first time.

Ashley is not going to be a bride for Halloween, just for today. Her Genie costume hasn't gotten here yet, well, the first one got here and it was too small. We ordered a new one, but it should be here this weekend. So she volunteered to wear this to be a bride.

Birdie loved her little dress and was a little doll. Daniel really wanted to be a Coogar Football player (UH), but it is next to impossible to find UH stuff. So he settled for being a Texan. He was fine with it as long as he got to wear a "real" football helmet.

Tonight we had our first Halloween Party of the year. Granny's assisted living facility does a great event every year with a one man band, dinner, costumes, games and trick or treating for the kids. We all had a good time.

You know the kids were the life of the party. They loved it.

MaMa DaDa

Most parents can't wait for their little one to say MaMa or DaDa. Well, someone in our house is very happy and someone isn't. Below is the video of what happens when you try to get Birdie to say MaMa. Sorry, I'm a total dork and took the video sideways again.

Can you guess which of us is gloating? And YES, she does this EVERY time you say MaMa.

Our Soccer Star

With Ashley's Fall soccer season almost over, I finally managed to get her scoring a goal on video. It was a great score.

She and the rest of the Cheetah's played really well this weekend. After talking about how she isn't that fast, Ashley managed to outrun some of the other teams fastest players to steal the ball. Talk about excited. I did miss getting video of a her beating a girl down the field to block the score at the last minute. It was great - everyone cheered for her.

She is doing so well. I hate to see the season come to a close. Only 3 games left!

Course, I think we might have a few more soccer players in the family.

No, No, No

Daniel & Ashley taught the Birdie how to say No! Funny, she always screams it or actually, she shrieks it.

This went on for quite a while, over and over.

She also says DaDa quite clearly and gives us the sign for Daddy. Birdie only manages to say MaMa when she wants to get my attention, so it is usually very loud.

Parenting Help Needed

So much for Scream-Free Parenting. I haven't even finished the book yet (which is a pretty good book). Daniel cleaned up the playroom by himself so he could play Webkinz on the computer this afternoon. Well, I couldn't get the internet to work, so I decided to load one of their computer games, which takes a few minutes. He went upstairs to play with Ashley while it loaded. Next thing I hear is Ashley shrieking for him to get out of her room. Naturally, like the 3 year old he is, he didn't get out. More screaming and hitting sounds from both of them. Then it got worse, so I decided to go check on them. They were in Daniel's room - evidently Daniel had grabbed a hostage - a 12 dancing princesses Barbie, and run off with it - Ashley laid chase. When I walked in, Ashley had him in a headlock, biting his head. Yikes. Needless to say, there was no Scream Free Parenting going on at the moment.

Guess I need to go finish reading the book.

Scream-Free

My Mom gave me a book yesterday entitled, ScreamFree Parenting. The Revolutionary Approach to Raising Your Kids by Keeping your Cool. I guess I could have been offended by the book, but strangely, I welcomed the assistance. The last few weeks have been a little crazy, as noted by the lack of my blog postings, and I could use some reminders of how to get my life together. I started reading it yesterday in the carpool line, while it isn't anything truly revolutionary and new, it is nice to have a refresher on how I need be handle myself in dealing with the kids.

Oh, did I forget to mention that Mom got one for you too, Shelly? Enjoy!

Our Little Preschooler

Since I haven't posted about Daniel's first week of Preschool - I'd better do it now. Daniel started Preschool just after Labor Day Weekend and seems to be loving it. He is attending a new school because of the move, and while he doesn't know any of the other kids, he is thriving. They only "allow" you to drop off and pick up in the car line - no going in for Preschool. I was worried about this policy because I loved going in at our other school - socializing with the other moms, talking with the teacher each day, staying late to play on the playground with the other kids/moms. The drop off only rule does have its benefits though, no getting Laurie in and out of the car, it is very fast, and most important, Daniel goes in by himself like the big boy he is. At our last school, Daniel had clingy issues, even as late as April. Being dropped off helps him to feel he is big and can go in without Mommy. So for that reason, I am thankful.

When he gets in the car after school, he talks and talks all about what he did and other little things he wants me to know. It is very cute. He is growing up so fast. When did my little boy get to be a little man? He is also enjoying time without Ashley though he is excited for her to come home and play with him.

Shamnesty is Back

I never post about politics, but since I am sending emails to bunches of people talking about this, I might as well blog about it. The Dream Act is coming for a vote this week in the Senate. The Development, Relief and Education for Alien Minors Act (Dream Act) would provide a path to citizenship for illegal immigrant students. The DREAM Act would also repeal Section 505 of the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996, which currently puts limits on states' ability to provide in-state tuition to illegal immigrant students. Which means, it allows states to charge in state tuition for illegals and allows the illegals to apply for federal student loans and grants. The trick is, LEGAL immigrants may not apply for these benefits and most military families cannot receive in state tuition due to frequent moves.

I have to blog on this because I don't feel that the major media is covering it, that unless the citizens speak out to our Senators it will pass. This is not a Republican/Democrat issue. It is about protection of our country. We need to enforce the immigration laws we have, not pass more amnesty provisions and give Illegals more benefits. We should celebrate our Legal immigrants and simplify their path into our country and to citizenship.

Most Senators' votes are officially not committed, so there is still time for our voices to be heard. The best website I found to get the word out to your Senators is www.numbersUSA.com They will send FREE blast faxes to your Senators' office. The main Senate switchboard is 202-224-3121. I've already called both mine, Hutchison and Cornyn.

I guess our Senators didn't listen a few months ago when we said No Amnesty for Illegals. We have to keep telling them!

Barney at the Zoo

Today we introduced Laurie to a classic must-see video of all young toddlers - Barney at the Zoo! Daniel picked it out for her - he still loves it! She loves the dancing Barney scenes. Now, don't get me wrong, when Laurie watches tv, that means she stands still for about 10 seconds then takes off to do something else. Other TV shows that catch her eye - Backyardagins, Mickey Mouse Clubhouse, Dora and a new one called Yo Gabba Gabba. And of course, she will watch her Baby Signing Time Videos and signs along with the songs.

She can even "sing" a few songs now. The Baby Signing Time Theme song, the Barney "I Love You" song, and one more that I can't think of at the moment.

Birdie has also started really babbling, like she is telling you something important. This week, she waved Bye Bye at me when I told her we were going Bye Bye. And now she also kisses and blows kisses at you.

Lastly, I must mention that the sweet little easy going baby is gone. She is still sweet, but she know what she wants and will let you know about it. Lots of personality! It is interesting because we will be out and you will see her scream and fuss when I stop her from doing something. I think I'm having flashbacks to about 4 1/2 years ago to a curly headed little girl we affectionately called Wumpy. Yep, I think this one has the same strong willed personality as her big sissy. That will bring it own positives and negatives. And lots of challenges.

Update - she has 8 teeth with barely any hair on top, but is growing quite the mullet in the back. Oh, and with NO curls. I am shocked.

The pictures in the pink shirt were at cousin Brenna's birthday party last weekend (to see more pictures, check out the All Things Kelly link above on right). Above is a picture of Laurie with her friend Kai, and the two others were taken at home trying on Ashley's old clothes.

First Day of School

We now have a Kindergartner!

After preparing for Kindergarten for several weeks, Ashley was extremely excited to go off to school this morning. We had no problems, no anxiety, only shear excitment.

While she didn't know anyone in her class - or at the school since we just moved, it didn't bother her. Or should I say, didn't faze her. Her teacher, Ms. T, has been a teacher at the school since it opened 10 years ago and has received teacher of the year several times. (The other parents told me.)

Brian and I with Daniel & Laurie all walked Ashley in the first day, she remembered where her classroom was and immediately went to play with the other kids. I don't think we were there 2 minutes, and didn't even get a good bye from her. The teacher was sweet and gave us a little bag with a poem and tea bag in it. Cute.

When Ashley found out last week that she could buy her lunch at school, she decided she was goign to do that ALL the time. Then I told her maybe we should check the lunch menu to see if there is something she likes. Whoops, the first day of school, they are serving PIZZA. When I told Ashley, she said "Ok, I will take my lunch the first day." The second day they are serving Chicken Nuggets, so she is planning on buying her lunch tomorrow. Of course, then we discover the kids have an id number they need to memorize to order lunch (you put money in their "account" by id number). So, its elementary school, you might think the number would be 4 digits? Nope, its 6 digits. Would you believe that she had that number memorized within 2 hours of orientation so she could buy her lunch (before we found out it was pizza). Actually, when we went into the cafeteria to put money in her account at orientation, she asked if she could buy lunch that day.

We live just shy of 2 miles from the Elementary school, which for me, is just too far to walk with 3 little kids and we haven't met anyone to carpool with yet. So we have to drive her to and from school everyday. (No bus service within 2 miles). The first day was absolutely crazy at drop off, or I should say, park and walk in. That was expected. To pick her up, I left about 10 min before school got out and didn't even make it a mile (not out of my neighborhood) before the line started. It took over 30 minutes of sitting in that line to get her. Hopefully that was first day chaos. The school has 1120 kids at it (built for 740), so they actually have 2 different carpool lines depending on where you live and a 3rd for "HOV" riders (cars with 3 or more students). I gotta met some people to get in that HOV lane. Of course, in 4 years, I'll have my own 3 in Elementary school together and we can get in the HOV line ourselves. For now, I will have to play with what time I leave the house to get in line.

When Ashley got home from school, she had lots to tell us, about her new friends, about the teacher, all the new rules. She can't wait to go back. We celebrated with fun cupcakes and dinner out - her choice. I was personally expecting to go to McDonald's, but she wanted Chinese food. Go figure.

It's going to be a good week for Ashley.

Uh-Oh

Yesterday, I left the baby downstairs to go referee a fight upstairs with the other two. While I was in the playroom, I kept thinking, I need to check on Birdie. After a few minutes, I went to the top of the stairs and there was the Bird. About two steps away from the top. She had managed to climb over our barrier and get all the way up the stairs very quickly. Our barrier on the stairs is a kid bed rail. While some of the other kids a little older than her are now able to climb over it, she had never even tried before. I really didn't think she could do it, or had the inclination to do it. Guess that theory is blown. I'm already looking on the internet for a new gate - I want a fabric mesh that retracts when not across the stairs. We just got really lucky she didn't take a tumble onto the tile below.

Now the trick is, to keep her from doing it again when I am not looking until I get the gate!

Update on Me

It's been 5 days since my "procedure" and how do I feel? Well, the throat swelling is gone, but my throat is still killing me. It feels like a bad sore throat when I swallow, so eating and drinking has gotten more difficult. Today was the first day since the day I had the procedure that I took pain meds. I haven't been sleeping well and Brian was home today, so I took one and slept the day away. When I woke up, I was more than a little jealous because he had all three kids out in the pool having a great time.

The question everyone is asking me is - has it helped at night yet? Brian would be quick to tell you that it has made everything worse for the time being. With my throat and soft palate such a mess, I'm not sleeping well, and when I do, I'm waking myself up with the noise. We have to wait until after the "wound" heals and then a few more weeks before we hear any results.

Oh, and if I could take a picture to show you, I would. My throat looks nasty. Directly above my uvuala, where it attaches, my palate has this great big white ulcear mess with some black stripes in it. Yuck. You don't want me to describe how it all tastes in my mouth. Really, you don't.

Even though it hurts more now than it did on Friday, there are a few up sides. I don't really sound funny anymore. People can understand me without asking if I'm sick or if something is wrong with me. And my throat feels mostly clear, not like before, where it felt like something was constantly sitting in the back of my throat.

Hopefully, only a few more days and I'll feel a little more normal.